Tagged Questions

Vanilla may refer to either the bean / pod of specific types of orchids, or flavoring derived from those pods. Use this tag for questions about selecting, identifying, storing, preparing, replacing or cooking with vanilla as a star ingredient. Questions about dishes which include vanilla, but are ...

I would like to start using Vanilla bean paste in some of my recipes. I usually use Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla extract and wondered if the measurement was the same i.e. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract = 1 ...

I have a recipe for an apple-strawberry crumble that calls for "1 vanilla sugar." I don't have any, so I'm looking for advice on how to substitute vanilla and sugar for the vanilla sugar - as well as ...

My mom just bought me some vanilla beans from Tahiti and said that the person she bought them from suggested using rum to make an extract. What type of rum should be used, white or dark rum, and is ...

Every time I make use of vanilla beans, specifically the seeds contained in the pods, the seeds fall to the bottom of whatever it may be that I am making.
I was wondering if there is a technique to ...

When/why would one use "vanilla sugar" instead of just plain sugar along with vanilla extract and/or beans/pods, particularly in recipes and baking? Is it just a matter of convenience?
I understand ...

How much cream can one vanilla bean able to provides its flavor before it breaks out ? I presume there's a limit to infuse the cream to the right flavor. I think it will be a waste not to infuse more ...

When baking or using vanilla, most recipes call for vanilla extract. In the supermarket you can find imitation vanilla flavoring for less money. Obviously the imitation is meant to be as close to the ...

I am absolutely addicted to making my own candies and confections, and I just adore making all kinds of fudge and truffles. However, I seem to have this issue whenever I go with a very simple recipe: ...

I would like to make a simple vanilla sauce for my cake.
So far, my idea is to cook a sweet cream pudding (using a pudding mix from a bag), and then enrich it with ground vanilla beans.
At what stage ...

As recipes using vanilla seeds often request the pod to be chucked in the pot, I'm thinking there must be no unappealing flavors in the pod itself.
I've seen vanilla pastes for sale but they seem to ...

I can't count the times I have heard that vanilla brings out the flavour of other foods. For example it "makes chocolate taste more chocolatey," etc... I have also heard that it's the only spice that ...

I am in the habit of using vanilla extract but I would like to start using whole beans sometimes. They are expensive and if I buy them online I will have to have some on hand rather than buying them ...

In this case it is a banana cream pie, but also in candies. The simple argument I've heard is that the alcohol in it will boil off, but in my case my imitation vanilla doesn't even contain alcohol. ...

Most of the recipes and guides I have read for making vanilla extract say to use cheap vodka or whatever is available; however, if I am going to have it on my shelf for the next few years, I want to ...

I've been baking for quite a while, but now have started venturing myself onto the chocolate world. I'm very very intrigued by Laduree's vanilla ganache on their vanilla macaron as it doesn't taste ...

There's another question about the difference between artificial and real vanilla extract, saying people can tell the difference, but perhaps not in baked goods. The labeling can also be confusing.
...

Recipes with milk and/or cream (panna cotta, ice cream, pastry cream, ...) often ask for the seeds of a vanilla pod (in Europe at least). A fair proportion of those also mention to throw the pod in ...

In the accepted answer to this question, it was said that bourbon can make a half-decent substitute for vanilla. I fail to understand how because the primary flavor component is vanillin and as far as ...

Today I made creme brulee, which I'm not very familiar with but have done once or twice.
The consistancy was fine, aswell as the caramelized sugar, but it had a very low taste of vanilla, even though ...

Usually the "flavorless" version of various desserts or drinks is in fact vanilla flavored -- why not leaving the product just as it is, especially when the "flavoured" versions usually don't contain ...

When I scrape out the seeds out of my vanilla beans and simmer them with milk or incorporate them into batter, they always leave little tell-tale black dots in the finished product. Is it possible to ...

I have used some vanilla pods that I bought on a farm in Mauritius to make crème anglaise. Because the pods are a bit special, I have fished them out of the cream and left them to dry. They smell as ...

This question has answers which explain the difference between vanilla essence and vanilla extract, and which tell you when you may want one over the other - if I am correct in thinking that "vanilla ...

Yesterday I made vanilla sauce to go with an apple pie. I used about 2 dl milk, 3 egg yolks and some sugar. I whisked it in a double boiler maybe too vigourously, because there were tiny bubbles of ...

Some background: We had some visitors from Austria recently and they wanted to make a cake.
The cake called for a couple of ingredients not terribly easily obtainable locally and which I am not too ...